AOA has various categories of affiliation, association and membership, determined by the experience, qualifications and good standing of the applicant, and subject to the terms of the AOA Constitution and Code of Conduct.
Overseas-trained doctors interested in becoming a member of AOA, please click here.
Associate (Trainee) Members
Associate members are AOA Trainees – hospital registrars who are training as orthopaedic surgeons. They are in the process of attaining the qualification FRACS(Orth) by successfully completing the AOA Training Program.
By application and acceptance into the training program administered by AOA on behalf of RACS, a trainee automatically becomes an Associate Member. Trainees pay an annual training fee comprised of two components – an AOA fee and a RACS fee.
Associate Members are not voting members of AOA.
Affiliates
Affiliates can be medical practitioners or medical/non-medical scientists not practising orthopaedic surgery but with an interest in an area related to orthopaedic surgery, or such other persons as the AOA Board may consider appropriate for membership and who are then elected an Affiliate.
Affiliates are not voting members of AOA.
Applications for Affiliate Membership are considered by the Federal Membership Committee three times a year.
Fellows
Fellows are registered medical practitioners who possess the qualification FRACS(Orth) from the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons or its equivalent and who have been elected a Fellow.
Fellows are full voting members of AOA.
Applications for Fellowship are considered by the appropriate state branch executive.
There are also other categories of Fellows: Senior Fellows, Life Fellows, International Fellows. For more information please contact AOA.
Information for overseas-trained doctors
Doctors who have obtained their qualifications overseas should consult the Australian Medical Council website about recognition of their qualifications in Australia.
Those who have obtained specialist qualifications overseas will normally be required to apply through the Australian Medical Council to undergo a vocational assessment by the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons.
All questions concerning the entry of overseas-trained doctors into the RACS-AOA advanced training program in orthopaedic surgery should be addressed to the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons in the first instance.
General information about working as a doctor in Australia can be found at the Australian government website DoctorConnect.